Through The Cracks
by alex-c101
Summary: Jack and Danny investigate the disappearance of a 14 year old from a snobby preparatory school after he is tormented by his classmates. Rated K for mature content. Please R &R!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I wish I owned Jack and Danny, I really do. But we all don't get what we wish for, so Without a Trace and any affiliates are not my property, and the property of Warner Brothers Television. I'm poor, so please don't sue

Heathland Prep, Gymnasium

The sounds of a whistle could barely be heard over muffled yelling and the bouncing of a ball. About ten teenaged boys were running up and down the court, chasing a basketball, shouting and pushing one another. They were dressed in a standard grey t-shirt with a yellow "H" imprinted on the front and on the burgundy shorts. A gym teacher was attempting to keep up with the play, blowing his whistle for a foul when the boys shoved a little too violently. Over on the bench sat three players, obviously not able to keep up with the competition due to their size. Blake Hutchings sat with his chin resting on his hands, watching the play move up and down the court. His blue eyes were glazed with boredom. He was short for fourteen, and peered out behind his light brown shaggy hair.

The gym teacher blew his whistle loudly, signifying the end of the game. He called everyone into the middle of the gym.

"Nice hustle gentlemen, get changed and have a good lunch." His eyes lingered on Blake momentarily as everyone started moving to the change rooms while he hesitated. Inside the change rooms the boys yelled across to each other as they showered and changed into their staple white dress shirts, burgundy pants and ties.

Blake was the last to exit the showers, drying his shaggy hair with a towel. He was much shorter than the majority of the boys, barely passing for twelve. He sat down on the bench as almost everyone was finished. He turned to his locker and cubby-hole to grab his pants and shirt and froze in shock. Two of the larger boys walked by him, sharing in bouts of laughter before exiting the change room. Written in black, heavy letters was the word "QUEER" on his locker door. He quickly pulled on his pants, shirt, and tie, grabbed his backpack and ran out of the door.

In the hallway, almost everyone had hurried off to lunch. There was only Blake's math teacher, Mr. Davids, patrolling the hallway to make certain no one disturbed the classes still in session.

"Blake, you better tighten that tie buddy, you don't want trouble from the uniform patrol." He smiled at Blake, who was rushing past him to the exit doors. His smile faltered when he saw Blake's tears on his face.

"What's wrong?" He called after him, but Blake merely shook his head and threw open the doors, not giving a damn if they weren't allowed off grounds for lunch. Mr. Davids watched as Blake Hutchings ran across the back field, his lone figure disappearing through the fence.

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Heathland Prep, Principal's Office

"We are worried what kind of image this will give our school, Detective Malone."

Jack and Danny were sitting in the principal's office of Heathland Prep after being called in during first period.

"Ah, I see. So you're trying to tell me you don't really give a damn about your missing students, am I correct?" Jack eyed the principal seriously.

"No, no. That's not what I'm saying. I'm merely suggesting that parents might begin to wonder what kind of control we have over our students if they can just stroll off campus during lunch. It's merely a safety concern" Principal Mason peered at Jack through her red glasses, her sharp comments reminding him of just how big of an asshole authorities could be.

Danny piped in now, "I wouldn't call it 'strolling off' Mrs. Mason. It appears that one of your students was being tormented under your very nose."

"I can't have you questioning and assaulting my students, Detective Taylor. This is Heathland Preparatory School, parents pay a lot of money to allow their children to learn here. His mother was informed and is on her way, I'm sure you will get all the information you need from her." She was almost sneering at the two detectives now.

"Well, I'll tell you what. We're with the FBI, and we _will_ question your students, regardless of the tuition fees of this school. Our main priority is to find a missing child who was under your care, which isn't apparently one of your priorities." Danny nodded to the Principal as she opened her mouth in shock, and followed Jack out of the office.

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"I just don't understand. He never told me he was having problems at school. He always said he loved it here, and that he didn't mind me working so much to pay for his tuition." Blake's mother, Lisa, sat in an empty class, relaying her story to Jack. Danny was sent to question some schoolmates, hoping his young and vibrant personality would make things easier.

"We see this all the time, Mrs. Hutchings. Teenagers don't typically tend to tell their parents what's really going on." He pulled out his notepad, "Could you tell me a timeline from yesterday morning please?"

"I left before Blake woke up, I went into his room to kiss him goodbye. He was still sleeping; his father usually gets him up before leaving for his job. I work at the library on South St, Sean works as a locksmith. Needless to say, we need to work long hours to afford his tuition here." Lisa put her head in her hands, "He never came home after school, I called around and his friends never even saw him at lunch. I just assumed he was being irresponsible and spending the night somewhere. I left for work thinking he would go to school on his own, and I would kill him when he got home."

Jack smiled faintly before continuing, "And both of you were at work yesterday?"

Lisa nodded strongly, becoming defensive like all parents. "So you had no idea about the teasing and bullying that was going on?"

She shook her head and burst into tears, "I just thought he'd come to us, you know? We're his family."

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Danny met Jack in the hallway on the third floor.

"I got nothing from his friends, they played videogames, drank, slept over at each other's houses every weekend. Nothing out of the ordinary for a fourteen year old in a snobby prep school." Danny motioned toward room 314, "His gym teacher. I got wind about an incident that no one seems to know much about."

They both knocked and entered quickly. Coach Baber was sitting at his desk in his empty classroom, marking tests. He shook his head at the paper he was marking, scratching the majority out with red pen.

"That's probably my test," Danny joked, taking a seat on a desk in front of Coach Baber with Jack.

"You seem like the kind of guy that would know a little more about human anatomy than my 16 year olds," he smiled back, "What can I do for you?"

"We're here to discuss an incident that occurred a few days ago involving Blake Hutchings in your phys ed class third period." Jack remained serious, eyeing him for weakness.

"Yes, I'm sorry to hear about Hutchings. We're all a little shaken," Jack watched him nervously play with his pen now, "I happened to break up a fight in the change room between Blake and another boy, Taylor Mann. Mann's about twice his size, so I was surprised when I ran in there after hearing shouts to see Blake taking him on."

Jack nodded as he wrote in his notebook, "I assumed you disciplined both boys?"

Baber shifted a little nervously, "No, no I didn't actually. The school's policy on fighting is a little strict, so I decided to send both boys to the counsellor instead, not before sending Hutchings to the nurse. He deserved the black eye, trying to take on my wide receiver, but he managed to do a little damage himself."

"I'm a little confused. There was no report of Blake seeing the counsellor in school, Mr. Baber." Danny eyed the coach, seeing another winner-hungry coach.

"Well…it's getting close to semi-finals right now, so I decided to hold off on the counsellor until a few weeks."

Jack stood up, "So you're telling me Taylor Mann wasn't punished for taking on a teenager half the size of him."

Coach Baber became defensive, "Blake instigated the fight, he's lucky Mann didn't inflict serious harm on him. I could've suspended both of them."

Danny shook his head and walked to the door, "And I'm sure you had no idea about the bullying and tormenting going on during your class. Am I correct?"

Coach Baber sat there, stone faced as the two detectives left his classroom.

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Taylor Mann was walking down the stairwell, a math textbook in tow. Danny marvelled at a kid who was fourteen, yet twice his size. He stopped short of the two detectives who were standing at the bottom. Taylor could easily take on Danny and Jack with one arm as he approached them with caution.

"Taylor? Could we have a word?" Jack gruffly stated his demands, quietly wondering what would happen if he decided to become violent.

"I'm late for my math class, I can't have another detention or I'll be benched for practise." Taylor eyed the two detectives suspiciously as Danny looked at his split lip, quietly praising Blake for the spine to stand up to this bully.

"I'm sure it will be fine, we'll talk to your math teacher. I'm Detective Malone, this is Agent Taylor." Taylor tightened up at the announcement of their professions.

"I'll keep this short, we would like to know why you fought Blake Hutchings on Monday, and your whereabouts yesterday night."

Taylor rubbed his chin and moved towards the door, "I was at tutoring all last night with Sarah Smith, she's a university student who keeps my grades up."

"Ok, and the reason as to why you fought a child half your size?"

"We were just playing around," he shrugged, "We were just roughin' him up, and he said a few things that were a little too large for him."

"So basically he defended himself, and you fought him." Danny shook his head, "And I'm sure you know nothing about the kind phrase written on his locker, either."

Taylor glanced over his shoulder and shook his head before walking out the door.

Jack's phone suddenly rang, "Malone? Mhm…yep…Davids…so that's prior to 1994?...Ok, thanks Sam."

Jack hung up his phone, "Sam did a background check on all the teachers and known pedophiles in this area. We've got one teaching right here."

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They found Mr. Davids in his classroom, writing a long list of homework questions to be completed for his next period class. The two detectives walked in and the math teacher nodded hello.

"This is Agent Taylor, and I'm Detective Malone. I'm to understand that Blake Hutchings confided in you?"

Mr. Davids paused from writing on the chalkboard and wiped his hands on the front of his dress pants. "I wouldn't really call it confiding, Detective Malone. I just befriended him because I saw he was struggling to fit in. It's not easy for a freshman at a high-priced prep school."

"Mr. Davids, are you familiar with Dani Winters?" Jack watched as the math teacher froze and his face fell.

"Yes, I'm aware of my past thank-you very much. If you'd bothered to look, you'd notice that the claim was false and all charges dropped."

Danny paused before starting, "Yep, and I'm sure you didn't frighten her into keeping her mouth shut. How'd you get this job?"

Mr. Davids eyed the two angrily, "I'm not a pedophile, damnitt. She claimed I touched her inappropriately after class, which I was never in the same room as her alone. I got this job because the charges were dropped and Mrs. Mason truthfully believed me of my innocence."

"I'm sure that's very comforting for Dani Winters to hear." Jack approached him slowly.

"I was the only one who reached out to this kid, everyone else let him slip through the cracks," Mr.Davids continued, "I knew he was being tormented, and I told him he could come to me whenever he needed to."

"I'm sure you had other motives than to support a struggling student, but I won't deal with you now. If it comes down to it and I find that you were touching this kid or anyone else, I will put you away for a long time," Jack motioned to his badge, "The FBI can ruin your life."


	2. Chapter 2

"Seriously cut the bullshit." Jack was sitting, once again, in Principal Mason's office. Danny had returned to the office to work on a list of potential suspects.

"Detective Malone, please don't insinuate that I do not have the best interests of my students in mind."

Jack let out a harsh laugh, "And I'm sure that the best interest of your students is to have a pedophile teaching them. What happened when you ran a background check? Didn't you see he had a prior?"

"We don't run background checks here; all our teachers are extremely qualified and have several years of impressive schooling under their belt. Obviously we need highly qualified teachers at this school for the price that the parents are paying for tuition," Principal Mason pulled off her glasses and narrowed her eyes, "In fact, it was Mr. Davids who confessed to me of his prior misunderstanding with the troubled girl."

"And you thought that just because he told you of his pedophile tendencies that he must be innocent?" Jack stood up, clearly disturbed.

"Pedophile tendencies? The complaint was dismissed; the girl was obviously troubled and mistook Mr. Davids dedication to his job for a sexual advance."

Jack opened the door and looked over his shoulder, "She was fifteen, I think she knew the difference between dedication and rape. She denied a rape kit, obviously because she was ashamed at what had happened. You hired a kiddie rapist and I'll be damned if you or Mr. Davids ever step foot into a teaching position again."

He left her office and slammed the door shut behind him.

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Bullpen

"It was written in an almost paint-like black marker, no leads on who vandalized his locker?" Martin sat down at the table with three coffees.

"None. No one seems to know anything. He was the last one out of the shower, and almost everyone was gone to lunch. I'm thinking that the person who wrote it was working alone," Danny riffled through his notepad, "I did find someone, one of Blake's closest friends Travis. He said that lately a group of guys, led by Taylor Mann, had tormented him on his sexuality."

Sam took a sip of her coffee before chiming in, "His sexuality? He's fourteen; everyone around that age is confused."

"The most confusing thing was that Travis said Blake was straight. I have no idea why those boys would taunt him or what put that idea into their heads."

Martin opened his files, "You said there was an altercation in the change room? Are you thinking that was him being tormented yet again and standing up for himself?"

Sam nodded before Danny could speak, "I think so. I think he grew tired of them tormenting him for something he wasn't. This is leaning towards a runaway case."

"Nothing on the rapist teacher?" Martin held up a photo of Mr. David's police photo.

Danny shook his head, "Nada. Solid alibi, he was with his girlfriend all Monday night, came to school on time the next day. It was pure coincidence that he was the last to see Blake before he went missing."

Martin ran his hands through his hair in frustration, "Absolutely no leads at all. If this is a runaway case, where would he run to?"

"Somewhere he felt safe, away from everyone."

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Hutchings' Residence

Jack opened the drawers of Blake's desk, searching through the contents. The tech agent was on his computer reading through all his chat logs.

"There's nothing here out of the ordinary. Conversations with friends, homework sites, the typical fourteen year old porn sites, and games." The tech agent stood up, "I can take this down to the lab if you want to search through it yourself, but I highly doubt you'll find anything."

Jack shook his head and said his thanks as the tech agent left the room. He sat on the edge of the bed and looked around in frustration. There was nothing out of the ordinary here and he was suddenly ready to accept this case as another runaway.

"Are you done?" Jack jumped as a gruff voice jerked him from his thoughts. Blake's father, Sean, stood in the doorway to his room. He wore grey sweatpants and a blue t-shirt, and looked noticeably irritated.

"We didn't find anything that would point to foul play. As of now we're going to assume this was a runaway case." Sean looked relieved, and then noticed Jack surveying him intensely.

"I'd rather him be a runaway then someone taking him, you know?" Sean stared back at Jack in defiance.

"Mhm, totally understandable." Jack sensed Sean's uncomfortable body language and knew he had dealt with cops before. And it was quite obvious that he was hung-over as well. "I think we're done here."

Sean nodded and led Jack out of the room. He passed a spare bedroom that had the door slightly ajar. From what he could see, it was a well-lit room with a black suede couch.

"Do you mind if I use the bathroom?" Sean nodded and walked down the stairs. Jack waited until his footsteps died away before opening the spare bedroom door. The black suede couch was the only thing in the room aside from cabinet, along with multiple framed photos of Blake in varying ages. The room was extremely well-lit and the cabinet yielded several expensive camcorders and digital cameras. Jack heard footsteps coming back up the stairs and he quickly exited the room to meet Sean.

"Thanks a lot. So Blake uses his own computer?" Jack tried to keep the conversation friendly, not sure if Sean would detect his interrogation tactics.

"That's right. I have my own in the basement." Sean's eyes quickly looked over to the spare bedroom, noticing the door was a little more ajar.

"I see you have a hobby? Photography?" Jack watched closely for a reaction.

"Yep, I know I can't afford a hobby like that with all the expenses of the cameras and camcorders, but I make do. I'll show you my work sometime."

"Thanks, I'd like that." Jack nodded and walked down the stairs, realizing Sean's response was too mechanical and memorized.

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Bullpen

"That doesn't mean anything. Maybe the guy stole them." Jack had returned to the office and told them what happened.

"That seems odd, don't you think? It was over $5000 in equipment. A painter doesn't have the money to be sending his kid to an expensive prep school too."

Sam shrugged as Jack's phone rang.

"Yeah, I'll send someone over right now," Jack hung up his phone, "That was Principal Mason. The football coach finally did something right."

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Heathland Prep

Coach Baber sat in his gym office that was decorated in trophies, medals, newspaper articles, and photos of athletes.

"It was one of my boys that vandalized Hutchings' locker. I overheard him bragging during practise and decided to inform you immediately."

Jack got the sense that the coach was trying to be sarcastic, as if a missing child and the reasons as to why he was missing were unimportant.

"Which player was it?" Jack knew the answer.

"Taylor Mann. He wrote it with the paint they use under their eyes."

He nodded, "That would explain why the lab couldn't i.d. what marker was used. Where is Mann right now?"

Coach Baber leaned back in his chair, " He's in English. I can go get him for you, but I already gave him detention for tomorrow."

Jack stood up, "Thank-you for your help, but I think he deserves a little more than detention."

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Taylor Mann stepped out into the empty hallway and noticed Jack standing there.

"Good to see you again." Jack could hardly hide his anger, "Thanks for lying, are you aware of how much time you could've saved me by telling me you wrote on his locker?"

Taylor pulled on his tie nervously, "So what, I wrote on his locker what he really was."

Jack approached him, trying to keep his voice down for the classes going on. He pushed Taylor against the wall, regardless of his size.

"So what? You tormented and beat up a kid who was half your size. You beat him for something that he wasn't, you beat him for defending himself, and you made him want to runaway."

Taylor was breathing quickly; clearly afraid of this grown man that was threatening his territory. "He was. He was a queer. He was in all these videos. He liked it."

Jack stopped and let go of Taylor. "What the hell are you on about?"

Taylor adjusted his shirt and loosened his tie, "I saw them. They're on a website, this older guy's screwing him and I could tell he liked it." He let out a cocky smirk now.

Jack breathed in deeply, not sure how to react, "I don't know what the hell you were doing watching videos like that, but you will tell me what site this was, and then I'll have you doing detention until you get drafted into the NFL."

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	3. Chapter 3

_Tech Room,_

_Department of Missing Persons_

Jack sat at the computer desk with the tech agent, his eyes staring at the computer in disgust. Taylor Mann had written down the website address and he had immediately brought it to the tech agent. The website was one of the most horrific scenes he had ever witnessed, and he had been in this business for a long time. There were hundreds of pornographic photos and videos, all featuring Blake, ranging from him as a toddler to his current age. The website was 'Blake's Little Secret' and invited visitors to take a look around and become part of the family. He stared as Blake's bright blue eyes looked back at him, as if he was hoping there was someone out there that could help him.

"I recognize the room from Blake's house. It's the spare bedroom on the second

floor, the father seemed nervous when he noticed I had gone in there."

The tech agent nodded, "It's only your missing boy in all of the material, and I decoded the video files and the dates range back to '96 and '97."

"He's been abusing this boy since he was able to walk." Jack shook his head as yet another video played, this time of Blake as a six year old laying on the couch. Jack looked away as a man walked into focus and pulled off his shirt.

"You never see the face of the person abusing him. I'm pretty sure it's his father, but it looks like a few different people are involved."

At that moment Danny entered the room, "What the hell is this?" He looked disgusted as thousands of photographs flooded the screen.

"A website devoted to the abuse and torture of Blake," He turned to Danny, "I'm going to take a run at the father and Sam will take the mother, don't tell me she didn't know what was going on."

Danny nodded, "Do you think the father is the one who abused him?"

"I'm pretty sure he's been lending him out to a few buddies too."

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_Interrogation Room #1_

Sam walked into the room and sat down opposite Lisa Hutchings. He rested her file on the table and pulled out a few photographs.

"Mrs. Hutchings, do you recognize the room in this photograph?" The picture was of the spare bedroom of her house, with Blake and the abuser removed.

Lisa nodded, "That's the bedroom of the second floor in my house," she was a little suspicious, "What does that have to do with my son?"

Sam placed the photograph back into the folder, "Mrs. Hutchings, did Blake ever have any problems with his sexuality, his comfort level, or affection?"

Lisa thought for a second, "I don't really understand…No, I don't think so. Actually, his coach told us at a parent interview that Blake originally had trouble showering with the other boys. We though it was because he was just sensitive and shy."

Sam nodded and decided to be a little more aggressive, "So there was nothing to indicate that Blake was uncomfortable, besides the fact that he couldn't shower with his gym class?"

"Uncomfortable? I don't know where this is going, Agent Spade."

Sam held up another photograph, this one of Blake sitting on the leather couch while a man stood beside him.

"Your husband spent all weekend and every single morning alone with your son. He had over $3000 worth of camera equipment in your house, didn't you ever question why?"

"I…I don't…" Lisa began, but Sam cut her off.

"Don't play dumb, you had suspicions all along. Didn't you clue in, your son couldn't shower with other boys, he spent all this time alone and isolated, and your husband is an alcoholic?" She threw the picture down on the desk.

Lisa began to cry, "I always thought he was just a shy kid, I never thought the man I married would abuse our own son. If I just kept denying it, I'd thought it would stop."

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_Interrogation Room #2_

"Mr. Hutchings, do you have any idea why you're here?" Jack eyed the man sitting across from him with anger

"No, actually I'm a little confused. I thought our son was missing and you were supposed to be out there looking for him."

Jack felt a burning hatred rise inside of him, "Don't _ever_ pretend you give a damn about your son, Mr. Hutchings. The only reason you want him found is so you can continue to abuse him, along with a few of your sick buddies."

Sean looked shocked, "Abuse him? He's my son. I _love _Blake."

Jack pulled out a stack of photographs, "No, the only thing you love is uploading pictures and videos of you and your buddies raping your son. He ran away to escape your abuse, and all you can do is sit here and deny it."

He watched as something went to work in Sean's mind, "Call it what you want, but we all love Sean. That website brings us all together and my son is never harmed."

Jack stood up so fast his chair was knocked over. He quickly moved over to Sean and grabbed him by the throat, "You are a sick bastard, you know that? You've been raping him since he was able to walk."

"You can't….they can't…you can't see anyone's face." Sean choked and gasped for air as Jack tightened his grip.

"I don't care if we can't see your face on the video, I know it's you and your buddies.. And I can sure as hell see Blake's face as you rape him repeatedly in every single one. I would kill you, but you're not worth my job."

Jack let go of Sean and threw him, Sean stood up and tried to regain his breath.

"I love my son."

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"So we're dealing with a runaway case, as of now?" Danny sat beside Jack at the computer, pouring over the addresses of the thousands who visited 'Blake's Little Secret' everyday.

Jack nodded, "Sam's talking to the mother right now, and they're trying to figure out where Blake would go. Somewhere safe and out of the way."

"His photo is all over the news and flyers are everywhere. He's probably been hiding, travelling at night, making sure no one recognizes him.

"He's been missing since Monday afternoon, he probably could've travelled all Monday without being noticed; he's just a kid in a private school uniform, nothing out of the ordinary."

Sam rushed into the office, "Jack, one of Blake's friends just notified us that he received an email from Blake telling him he's ok, sent at eleven last night."

Jack stood up, "What's the IP address from the email?"

Sam looked down at the piece of paper tech had just sent her, "It's an internet café on West 23rd Street in Lower Manhattan."

"Sent at eleven, Blake had time to travel anywhere by bus, he could be long gone by now." Danny stood up as well.

"By city bus, yes, maybe he's not thinking of the city bus. It's only about 12 miles." Danny knew immediately what Jack was talking about. He grabbed his badge but left his gun in the top drawer.

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_JFK International Airport, Terminal 4_

Danny and Jack fit in perfectly with the thousands of businessmen dressed in the same black suits, quickly rushing to wherever their destination was. They went through security quickly and walked into Terminal 4, the flight destined for London, England.

Danny spotted Blake first, sitting in a chair by himself, watching the businessmen with interest. He looked at Jack and Jack nodded at him to signify he should take it from here.

Danny approached Blake slowly, trying to make it appear as if he was just another passenger on his way to London. He sat down across from Blake and he gave no notice to him as he continued to watch the passengers in Terminal 4.

Quietly, Danny began, "You know, buying an airline ticket with a passport that's not yours is a serious offence." He smiled at Blake to make sure things remained passive and comfortable.

Blake looked for a second like he was going to run, but couldn't get over his shock. He decided to keep quiet for the time being.

"I'm Agent Danny Taylor, I've been looking for you." He pulled out his badge and handed it to him. Blake took it silently and began looking at it intently.

"Thanks, but I'm going to England. I have my bags packed and my ticket and everything." He motioned toward the passport and ticket lying in his lap, thought for a second, and then tucked them both into his back pocket to show he didn't trust Danny.

Danny let out a quiet laugh, "I get it, I'm a cop. I wouldn't want to trust me either. You've got a pretty good friend, you know that? Travis covered your ass the entire time."

Blake smiled in spite of himself and handed him back his badge, "I know, Travis is my best friend." He remembered that he was supposed to be defiant and angry, and crossed his arms defensively to show Danny he wasn't leaving.

Danny noticed he had a black eye and had changed out of his school uniform.

"I see you dropped your school clothes, smart man." Danny tried to keep his voice calm and friendly, "You heard your description and decided to change. Nice shiner you got there." Danny got up and sat beside Blake, trying to take advantage of his relaxed attitude.

Blake reached up and felt his eye, finally breaking his silence. "Its not easy travelling at night in Lower Manhattan." He smiled brightly, and Danny watched as those blue eyes gazed back at him, the same ones from the videos. "How did you know about the passport?"

"Travis is a smart kid, but not as smart as the FBI. The whole time we questioned him he never gave us any information, except about a small fight you had. He only told us today that he received an email from you, and even lied about the time it came in."

Blake smiled again, "I told him to give me some time so I could get out of the country. I came by his house after to get his passport and he gave me some clothes, this suitcase, and his savings to buy a ticket."

Danny ran his hands through his hair and leaned back in the chair, "And what were you going to do once you got to England?"

"I was going to get a job to pay back Travis and then see what happened from there." Danny saw the excitement and opportunity in his eyes.

"A fourteen year old alone in Europe? I don't want to sound like a parent, but that wouldn't go down to well." Blake shot Danny a dark look, "I know why you wanted to leave in the first place. I know."

Blake turned away from Danny and he could sense he was uncomfortable.

"Blake, look at me. There's nothing to be ashamed of. It's not your fault, what your Dad and those other men did to you."

Blake turned back to Danny, but only to give him another look of hatred, "And what the fuck would you know about it."

"I saw them. I saw the website. I know the guys at school saw it and teased you, and they're assholes. They don't know what it's like to-"

Blake cut him off, "Just shut up, you have no clue."

Danny grabbed his shoulder, "I know man, I know exactly what it's like." Blake's expression turned from angry to surprise as Danny continued, "To have a Dad that's abusive, a drunk, a mom that's never there. I've been through it all. So don't think for a second that I don't know where you're coming from."

Blake nodded and swallowed hard, clearly fighting back tears, "I was so tired of it. I had it at home, and then it came to school. School was the only place that I could get away from it all."

Jack slowly approached the two and introduced himself.

"Hi Blake, I'm Danny's friend Jack. Are you ready to go home? We can wait if you need more time."

Blake turned to Danny and he nodded, "Let's go." He stood up, grabbed his suitcase, and Jack gently guided him by the shoulder out of the Terminal. He turned back to see Danny still sitting there, his face in his hands.

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End file.
